1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to the field of protective devices in general, and in particular to a protective device that is specifically designed for the practitioners of martial arts.
2. Description of Related Art
As can be seen by reference to the following U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,866,909; 4,213,202;, 4,872,215; and 5,090,053, the prior art is replete with myriad and diverse protective gear constructions.
While all of the aforementioned prior art constructions are more than adequate for the basic purpose and function for which they have been specifically designed, they are uniformly deficient with respect to their failure to provide a simple, efficient, and practical protective device specifically designed to provide protection for the user's forearms and thighs.
As can be seen by reference to the above cited patents, the prior art devices seem to concentrate on providing protection for the user's tipper torso, while basically ignoring the user's arms and legs in general, and in particular the forearms and thighs which are the recipient of a large percentage of forcible blows delivered during martial arts training.
As a consequence of the foregoing situation, there has existed a longstanding need among practitioners of the martial arts for a new and improved protective device that provides impact resistant protection to the user's arms and legs while not infringing to any noticeable degree the mobility of the user in either the defensive or offensive mode, and the provision of such a construction is a stated objective of the present invention.